Developers are to be given a second chance over proposals for a new hotel – after being told it needs to be a prestigious “bold and positive gateway” project for one of the county’s top business parks.

The new hotel will be built on a two-acre site next to a roundabout and the entrance to Adastral Park, alongside the A12 at Martlesham.

Proposals involve an 80-bed four-storey hotel, but councillors deferred the scheme – saying they would be prepared to see a 120-bed building with associated facilities, and authorised officers to hold talks with the developers Max Industrial LP to discuss quality and type of hotel, size, scale and design.

Suffolk Coastal’s south area development management sub committee also had before it proposals for a hotel with pub/restaurant and a “drive thru” restaurant for the site, but said more of the land could be used for the hotel if it could contain all the facilities needed for those staying.

Head of planning Philip Ridley said the aim for the site was a “bold and positive gateway” hotel to benefit the needs of the wider economy both for business and pleasure trips.

Gareth Evans, for the developers, said the current proposal would not feature a restaurant and was most likely to attract Travelodge as an operator. A hotel of 120 rooms would be needed to make in-house eating viable.

Councillor Josh Sayles said: “We are being told this should be a flagship building but what we have before us is not lavish but perfunctory – I cannot square those two things. I think we could do better.”

Councillor Kimberley Williams said: I don’t want this to be a missed opportunity – this building should make a statement, have adequate provision of bedrooms, catering on site and maybe even leisure.”

Councillor Tony Fryatt said: “It seems we are considering a choice between a bog standard unattractive hotel or proper facilities for people to come here.”

Martlesham district councillor John Kelso said the parish council was in favour of a hotel but it should be a maximum of three storeys to minimise impact on those living opposite the site across the A12.

The idea of a new hotel off the BT roundabout isn’t an issue (it even gets a nod from Mr. Kelso!), no it’s the proposed new village development further down the road which will really put a spanner in the works for all livingtraveling through Martlesham.
You ain’t seen nothing yet Barbara!

Forget Travelodge for the Hotel.. Invite Accor Hotels.. Needs to house upmarket bosses and visiting consultantscontractors.. I think this could really put suffolk on the map.. I needs it.. we currently hate the place and are selling up.. This area needs business.. Too late for us...

This section of the A12 will grind to a halt at peak times in the next few years. Imagine what's in the pipeline. The residents of 2000 new homes next to BT trying to join or cross the A12, plus the 160 new homes to be built opposite the Black Tiles.
There will be further growth in the retail park. Planning permission already exists to build a DIY centre behind Seapets, Poundland have applied for planning permission to open a store near to M&S with a coffee shop, and the site next to Tesco's entrance is on the market. Finally BT forecast that they will create many more jobs on their site. Goodness knows where staff and customers in the retail area will park.
The answer being proposed for this major trunk road is sets of multi-lane full-time traffic lights replacing three roundabouts on this one and a half mile section of the A12, each one similar to the new traffic light scheme at the bottom of Civic Drive, designed to give priority to buses to and from the new housing area, but on a major trunk road.
By all means let's have growth, jobs and new houses, but let's have realism about the capacity of the road network and plan workable schemes. This area is effectively on a peninsula, and there are no alternative routes to avoid this section of the A12 unless of course you go through the centre of Ipswich......

Martlesham village was built mid 70s managed by a property company called Bradford property trust, it was developed to attract boffins for the PO research, if people moved there because they thought it was a country village then it's there mistake. The land was Government owned as was the research land, the DOE managed the whole deal on behalf on the government, the land around the research site was always prime building land. Again big buisness calls the shots but as it is near to a main road you cant argue against the 2000 houses plus the rest.

We moved here in 1980 to live village life. Now it is more like a town and trying to park anywhere near Next etc is an nightmare. Where is all the traffic to go; getting onto the main road is already a nightmare, so will some bright spark be building a bypass. Don't think so. RIP what was Martlesham This is not being a Nimby as we already have had Grange Farm built, The heath, Martlesham Field in Woodbridge and lots of in filling and possibly Mr.Pipe;s field. I think we have done our bit